Eligible state pensioners will receive a free cash boost this winter.
Eligible state pensioners will receive a free cash boost from the DWP this winter (Image: Getty)
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will be sending letters to state pensioners for a free payment of up to £300 from Wednesday.
The £300 is a Winter Fuel Payment to help cover heating costs during the colder months and it is due to be paid to millions of pensioners in England and Wales this year. The payment is being restored to the vast majority of pensioners who missed out on it last winter following a change to eligibility rules, but a government U-turn earlier this year means around nine million pensioners are in line to get in 2025. The free support is worth up to £300 but the amount you get depends on when you were born and your circumstances during the qualifying week between September 15 and 21, 2025.
The DWP has confirmed that pensioners born before September 22, 1959, with an income of, or below, £35,000 will get between £100 and £300 to help pay heating bills this winter.
You must have reached State Pension age (currently 66 for men and women) by the end of the qualifying week (September 21, 2025) to be eligible.
The Winter Fuel Payment is worth £200 per household, or £300 per household where there is someone over the age of 80. Shared payments will be made to pensioners not on an income-related benefit such as Pension Credit.
Pensioners in England and Wales with an income above £35,000 per year will see their Winter Fuel Payment be automatically recovered by HMRC via PAYE or in their Self-Assessment tax return.
The DWP has confirmed it will begin sending letters to eligible pensioners in England and Wales from October and payments will then be made automatically in November and December, so you don’t need to do anything to get it.
The DWP said: “You’ll get a letter in October or November telling you how much Winter Fuel Payment you’ll get, if you’re eligible. If you do not get a letter but think you’re eligible, check if you need to make a claim.
“The amount you get is based on when you were born and your circumstances between 15 to 21 September 2025. This is called the ‘qualifying week’. Any money you get will not affect your other benefits.
“You’ll get either £200 if you were born between 22 September 1945 and 21 September 1959, or £300 if you were born before 22 September 1945.”
